Binge Eating

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Emorriso165
Emorriso165 Posts: 23
in Health and Weight Loss
I was wondering if there was anyone in here who had overcome binge eating? I've dealt with this in the past but felt like I'd started dealing with my stress in healthy ways (exercise, friends, etc) and dropped about 80 pounds. Now, however, for the past 4 months it has returned with a vengeance and I've gained 7 lbs since January.. I've started looking at self help books (I'm SOOO broke so therapy of ANY sorts is out for me at this stage in my life!) but I was wondering if any one could recommend one? Or any tips? I'm afraid counting calories is only making it worse because I feel restricted and I've noticed that most treatments for binge eating encourage NOT dieting.. but I was wondering if there was anyone on here who has made it work for them.. I guess I'd just like to hear that someone, anyone was able to overcome their disordered relationship with food.. I need to know that there is hope because I feel pretty out of control right now :(

Replies

  • caribeals
    caribeals Posts: 105 Member
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    I too have to deal with the urge to binge eat. one thing i have found that works for me is green giant steamers. they are in the freezer section at the grocery store. i like the broccoli with cheese sauce, veggie medly, and the broccoli cheese rice.. instead of grabbing an entire tub of ice cream when i have the urge, i pop a steamer bag in the microwave. even if you consume the whole bag, (which is a ton of food!) it is still extremely low in calories. there are a bunch of veggie varieties. they taste great. i know its not healthy to binge eat at all, but when i simply can't control it, i can at least grab a healthier alternative. instead of 1000+ cals of ice cream, you can have 200 cals of veggies. not ideal, but works for me.
  • sparkles321
    sparkles321 Posts: 107
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    I think I've seen this book mentioned on these boards before, but thought I'd post it again.

    http://www.amazon.com/Mindless-Eating-More-Than-Think/dp/0553384481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1271477115&sr=1-1

    I haven't read it yet, but it's on my wish list. The reviews look good and it seems to be about why we eat when we're not hungry. I'm not sure if you're binging because of a craving or feeling deprived of a certain food, or if you're eating when you're not hungry. But check out the reviews to see if it might fit what you're looking for.

    (Just in case the url doesn't copy right, do a search on amazon for "Mindless Eating: Why we eat more than we think")
  • tiffanygil
    tiffanygil Posts: 478 Member
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    Guilty as charged =). I am a binge eater. Once I start I cant stop. Its way easier for me to stop before it starts than when I'm in the middle of one. I'm learning that some foods acutally trigger the binges, cookies for instance. So I dont even eat one (or try not to) because I know once I get the taste in my mouth its over. Also night time seems to be my time of day to beinge eat so I have made myself set up a whole routine at night that keeps my hands and head busy. Good luck
  • marinewifey03
    marinewifey03 Posts: 8 Member
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    Hi there
    I myself have battled with binge eating my whole life. I have tried every "diet" there is, usually successfully until I fall off the wagon so to speak and begin binge cycles again. This time is different. Im not dieting im changing the way I eat. What I did to keep me from eating all the "bad" stuff is I researched why it was so bad. Once I learned I was ingesting basically toxins that were causing my weight gain and sabotaging my weight loss, damaging my vital organs, and messing with my metabolism and hormones my whole attitude changed. It changed from I have to diet to loose this weight, to I have to quit killing myself with all these bad food habits. The most source I have found so far is The diet solution: Stop dieting, start eating and start living. Its by Isabel De Los Rios. www.thedietsolutionprogram.com Its definetly worth reading.
    Educating myself on how bad most foods are, really helps when im having a moment of "binge or not to binge"...im VERY aware of the damage it will cause me im too scared to eat it, and grab a healthy choice instead :)

    Anyway hope this helps, good luck.
  • electricgypsy
    electricgypsy Posts: 32 Member
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    find a replacement activity. when you get the urge to eat, read for example and tell yourself if i'm still hungry after i've read this chapter then i'll eat. the urge may well have passed by the time you get to that point. :)
  • Amberly10
    Amberly10 Posts: 41 Member
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    Hmmm, I'm thinking that I might have this problem. The foods I go nuts over though aren't cookies and icecream. Mine are things like bacon, any type of potato.....pastas and Mt Dew!! My kids had friends spend the night last night so I got up and made a huge breakfast of bacon, eggs and biscuts and gravy. It kills me when I am making it....the smell of bacon, yummy. Then I sit down to a breakfast of 3/4 cup Special K cereal, a cup of coffee and banana. Hmpf.

    Right now I am chewing a piece of cinnamon gum to keep my mind off of it.
  • mzmoonlight
    mzmoonlight Posts: 160
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    I have and continue to deal with it. I dont think you can ever fully overcome it. Its one of those things (like other eating disorders) that you can work towards controlling but will always be there in the background. I can go for months eating perfectly and then it strikes when I think its not an issue any more. I've noticed triggers too. Like I need to save enough calories for the evening because I am a night eater and if I feel I dont have enough calories left I will panic and blow my diet. I dont agree compulsive eaters should not diet, of course they should! I didnt for the longest time, its how I ended up 265lbs! At least while I am dieting I am trying to control it. Not always successful but this journey is not an all or nothing experience for me.
  • kwardklinck
    kwardklinck Posts: 1,601
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    I too have this problem. It's why I gained all the weight I did when my mom was sick and when she died. I just try to limit my binges to 1 day a week. I've done it this whole time and still lost weight. I look forward to my cheat days a little too enthusiastically but they keep me honest for the rest of the week. I've also noticed that my binges aren't quite as bad as they were in the beginning. My stomach has gotten smaller so I don't go quite so crazy anymore.
  • aesoprok
    aesoprok Posts: 70
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    Great advice :happy:
  • Emorriso165
    Emorriso165 Posts: 23
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    Thank you guys for all your tips and advice! I have read this post like six times because it is fabulous just knowing that I'm not alone! I'm going to give some of your guys' tips a try and stick-it out with MFP. I know restriction makes me want to eat more, but I think that's normal and it's so easy to give in and binge because I've internalized the idea that I have a disordered relationship with food and that is hardly worth fighting it anymore. It sounds like a lot of us on MFP do, however, and if you guys can at least control it than it gives me courage and strength to try again. Thanks all for replying :)
  • AnnieeR
    AnnieeR Posts: 229
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    I've battled with this my whole life and I agree with mzmoonlight that it never totally goes away. But you can definitely learn to manage it. For me it's triggered by emotion, not food - so usually if I feel a binge coming on it means I'm lonely, bored, angry, or feeling out of control in some area of my life. I try to address the emotion rather than bury it in food.... Not easy, but it can be done! And if it's boredom I try to find something else to do that I enjoy but also I brush my teeth - it sounds weird, but somehow it also signals that I'm done eating.

    I'd also highly recommend virtually any book by Geneen Roth.

    Good for you for talking about it - it's an easy issue to want to keep to yourself but talking about it with other sufferers helps tremendously!!
  • Kath712
    Kath712 Posts: 1,263 Member
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    Hi,
    Dieting in my teens and 20s lead to binge eating for me. I had a lot of emotional stuff going on then, too. In my mid-20s, I was working with a nutritionist and she suggested the book "Overcoming Overeating." That book and the accompanying "When Women Stop Hating Their Bodies" truly changed my life.

    http://www.overcomingovereating.com/

    I have been able to use MFP as a way to track my calories (in and out) without making it a "diet." It's working for me because there are no "bad" foods. By not restricting myself, I don't feel the need to binge on the "off-limits" foods. I've managed to lose pounds through exercise, eating healthy and drinking lots of water. I could keep doing this forever. MFP has been great, both for the tracking and the support on the boards. It's the place where I can put it all together - nutritional, physical, emotional.

    Good luck to you! :flowerforyou: I agree with the others that said that we never truly get rid of the binge eating. But I know for me, I just don't want to go back there. Life is so much better when I'm taking care of myself in ways that don't involve food.

    Take care,
    Kathy

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